This is 15-year-old Jose Angel Garcia from Miami, Florida.
Garcia, who is in the 10th grade, told BuzzFeed News he had noticed a troubling trend. He said most of his male friends treat menstruation as if it's "repulsive," and a lot of his female friends get embarrassed or feel bad about having their period.
Garcia said he was bothered by that attitude. "I actually had started carrying tampons and pads in my bag because my girl friends often had to improvise with amusing (but not-so-sanitary) ways to stop themselves from leaking," he said.
So one day he decided to call out the guys at his school on Instagram. He used the hashtag #realmensupportwomen on his post, and challenged other guys to follow his lead.
The teen wrote:
TO EVERY BOY THAT FOLLOWS ME AND CALLS HIMSELF A MAN OR SIMPLY A GOOD HUMAN BEING. Petition for all of us to start bringing a couple pads or tampons to school to help our girl friends. If you have a girlfriend or are friends with a girl, u should know that they do not always have tampons or pads on them, or that sometimes their period just hits them without notice and have a bit of a problem finding one. We should support them with this, after all, we don't have to go trough all they they do because of menstruation, so it's just logical that we help them. You should already know to give them your sweater and not question when they wrap it around their waist. So let's step it up a notch and help them out. IF YOU HAVE ANY RESPECT FOR YOUR MOTHER, YOUR GIRLFRIEND, OR JUST WOMEN IN GENERAL I EXPECT FOR YOU TO FOLLOW ME ON THIS.
To every girl that follows me. You are completely welcomed to ask me for a pad at any time without receiving a negative response or a dirty look. We should all help each other out like this so you don't have to thank me at all. #realmensupportwomen
He posted the picture in March, and at first, no one paid attention. But then a girl from his school mentioned the picture on Twitter, and his post began to be shared online. It now has over 31,000 likes.
@falloutbooty99 I know it was a while ago, but I jut saw your #realmensupportwomen insta post and I loved it. My new favorite thing. 😘
#realmensupportwomen 👍👍
His post was even noticed by Kotex.
Garcia said although he has received some negative comments, many were in support of his tampon crusade.
He sees his activism as a way of making a difference. "I know I can't end bigger problems like sexism, racism, homophobia, and others, even though I want to, so for now, I'll attempt to end the taboo that guys associate menstruation with," he said.
Keep up the good work, Jose!
